Risk Registry
The Canadian Sport Risk Registry contains a number of common risks and is updated following each Risk Management Workshop. The risks and solutions are presented generically and anonymously, to provide insight for sport leaders to think differently about the risks that are ‘keeping them up at night’.
Challenges to compliance
The Risk:
Inadequate staff capacity or expertise to ensure that organization is compliant with all requirements.
Solutions:
- Consult with like organizations to determine how they maintain compliance.
- Seek board members with subject expertise.
Conflict resolution management
The Risk:
That a complaint, scandal, dispute, controversy or other incident between or among members will not be effectively handled and will escalate into a crisis.
Solutions:
- Establish a sound policy framework to deal with dispute resolution (code of conduct, discipline policy, appeals policy, independent and professional dispute management).
- Have a crisis communication plan.
- Have ready access to external advisors (legal, harassment, risk management).
- Clarify jurisdictional issues (national, provincial, club, event) to ensure there is clarity around jurisdiction and authority.
- Establish good media relations in both official languages.
- Have a strategy in place to deal with issue and assign a trained spokesperson.
- Provide coaches and other key personnel with conflict resolution training and media training.
- Make it mandatory that national coaches are members of Coaches of Canada (thus binding them to a national code of ethics and disciplinary mechanism).
- Publish a comprehensive team manual containing all relevant policies and information for athletes and coaches.
- Prepare a briefing book for each major event and major team.
- Establish clear terms of reference and job descriptions for team leaders.
- Ensure proper internal communications with athletes.
- Establish and clarify the role of team captain (athlete) and provide greater education and training for this role.
- Offer media training to athletes, coaches, administrators, team personnel.
- Communicate with insurance provider to ensure appropriate coverage exists for these types of risks.
- Declare as a True Sport organization to promote a positive image.
- Conduct a debriefing with executive team or senior management following any incident and document learnings, and adjust policies as needed.
- Develop and communicate clear team selection and appeal processes.
Lack of depth and balance of sport performance across the country
The Risk:
That the sport lacks balance or depth across the country. A small number of clubs dominate in terms of performance, and PTSOs are highly variable in terms of capacity to develop the sport.
Solutions:
- Enter into Memoranda of Understanding (MOUs) with PTSOs to identify specific roles and responsibilities in sport development. These can be customized based on capacity of the PTSO.
- Offer club rewards such as seed money, development grants, matching grants, awards, and recognition.
- Target specific clubs for enhanced support (financial, administrative, leadership)
- Consider organizing NSO services and staffing by region to maximize leadership, capacity and support for PTSOs and clubs (this may be especially beneficial in Atlantic Canada).
- Have strong technical leadership at national office, and commit to sharing information and supporting PTSO efforts in the technical area.
- Develop a certification type program for club managers, as part of a club excellence type program to enhance club capacity.
- Include a club management module into NCCP curriculum.
- Align championship events with LTAD principals.
- Rotate location of major championships to improve on accessibility and to increase visibility.
- Use social media to create excitement around the sport or event.
- Re-organize PTSO's into regional associations to pool resources and deliver better training to all athletes across the country.
- Have regular scheduled meetings with PTSO EDs.
- Consider simplifying LTAD with a focus on the end user.
- Strike committees to plan and evaluate the high-performance path, drawing on previous experience.
- Explore avenues to develop high-performance talent outside of traditional talent streams.
- Provide coach development and mentoring opportunities.
Lack of financial stability
The Risk:
Cash flow difficulties and inadequate resources result in board and staff time being spent managing short-term financial problems, versus working towards long-term solutions and more important objectives.
Solutions:
- Establish a credit line to bridge short-term financial needs.
- Budget conservatively at all times.
- Establish strong internal financial controls.
- Institute an audit committee and give it the expertise and authority it requires to oversee finances effectively.
- Develop an investment strategy to ensure maximum leveraging of existing assets.
- Review staffing structures to ensure optimal use of human resources.
- Recruit board members with financial experience.
- Pursue alternative funding sources through fundraising, merchandising, marketing, corporate sponsorship, alumni giving, crowdsourcing or IP leveraging.
- Look for financial savings through collaborative or cost-shared programs such as insurance.
- Explore staff secondment opportunities through corporate partners.
- Clearly articulate and communicate member benefits to boost membership.
- Look at potential membership areas currently not tapped, and alternative partners (industry, municipalities, schools).
- Review strategic plan to determine if it is aligned with current reality – may need to change expectations and performance objectives.
- Review programs / services and eliminate those that provide little value to members.
- Establish an appropriatea small surplus and reserve fund.
- Undergo a brand strategy development process to better align with potential partners / funders.
- Consider Club Excellence Program participation for access to financial management audit and review
- Apply an ethical code of standards to accounting and fundraising practices.
Lack of inclusion
The Risk:
Risk that all who want to participate in a sport activity do not feel safe or welcome.
Solutions:
- Develop and implement policies for gender (e.g., girls on boys’ teams), transgender, and LGBTQ2S inclusion.
- Connect with CAAWS to see what resources could be used to educate coaches and athletes on this issue.
- Explore a campaign to sensitize coaches about the power of language and acceptable conduct.
- Have effective code of conduct in place, and ability to implement disciplinary measures in a professional manner.
- Be clear that the organization does not discriminate and welcomes of diversity.
- Explore funding opportunities for athletes with financial challenges.
Lack of inclusion
The Risk:
Risk that all who want to participate in a sport activity do not feel safe or welcome.
Solutions:
- Develop and implement policies for gender (e.g., girls on boys’ teams), transgender, and LGBTQ2S inclusion.
- Connect with CAAWS to see what resources could be used to educate coaches and athletes on this issue.
- Explore a campaign to sensitize coaches about the power of language and acceptable conduct.
- Have effective code of conduct in place, and ability to implement disciplinary measures in a professional manner.
- Be clear that the organization does not discriminate and welcomes of diversity.
- Explore funding opportunities for athletes with financial challenges.
Lack of internal processes
The Risk:
Operational procedures are not fully developed, consistent or do not meet minimum legal requirements.
Solutions:
- Schedule a regular review of all internal processes.
- Create a task force with assistance from an external consultant.
- Create a staff Standard Operating Procedures (SOP) manual.
- Develop a protocol and policy to manage intellectual property.
- Integrate Imagine Canada standards.
- Conduct risk assessment when stepping outside standard operations or procedures.
- Use organizational values when making decisions.
- Create clear job descriptions and organizational chart to ensure confidence.
- Perform cost benefit analysis between hiring and re-organizing.
- Ensure all organizational information is secure and is regularly backed-up.
- Host regular all-staff meetings to share updates and answer questions.
- Have access to passwords in case of emergency.
- Have an elected staff member as a representative for compliance regulations.
Lack of safety procedures
The Risk:
NSO lacks appropriate policies and enforcement mechanisms to promote a safe environment for all participants. Organizational culture also works against a safe and secure environment.
Solutions:
- Review Code of Safety on a regular basis and update as required.
- Assign a liaison to all hosted events to oversee implementation of standards.
- Consider using insurance levers to promote compliance with national standards (e.g. if standards not met, insurance coverage does not apply to the event).
- Emphasize safety issues in all coach educational materials.
- Use national team athlete profiles to promote safety message.
- Ensure national coaches employment contracts include language pertaining to compliance with Code of Safety.
- Have effective code of conduct in place, and ability to implement disciplinary mechanisms in a professional manner.
- Focus on key messages re: risks of underage drinking.Link this to messages around sport excellence and professionalization of coaching.
- Bring NSO leaders together for a facilitated retreat to discuss risks and to refine strategies to change the culture within the sport.
- Recognize that organizational culture does not change overnight - it might take until the next generation of athletes to see desired changes.
- Ensure thorough compliance with applicable Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) Regulations.
- Refer to “Conflict resolution management” section regarding crisis management planning, and apply to safety scenarios as appropriate.
Lack of sound hiring practices
The Risk:
Lack of formal procedures for selecting coaches and other team personnel, lack of clarity around screening volunteers, lead to unsafe environments for national team activities.
Solutions:
- NSO has both formal and informal procedures for screening coaches and other personnel.
- Have strict policies for travel, accommodation and supervision for teams.
- Personal coaches are restricted to very narrow responsibilities. Institute more formal selection procedures to select coaches for teams, involving application, portfolio and interview component.
- Implement ten safe steps of screening (See Volunteer Canada - www.volunteer.ca) with all national teams, including police checks, using a phased approach.
- Implement ten safe steps of screening with all national teams, including police checks, using a phased approach. See Volunteer Canada.
- Create and adhere to formal volunteer selection criteria. Provide volunteer job descriptions and expectations.
Lack of strategic planning
The Risk:
Failure to use strategic plan to its full advantage.
Solutions:
- Develop a communications plan for board of directors and general membership.
- Integrate priority strategic items into operations plan.
- Use strategic plan as a guide when assessing the feasibility of new projects.
- Undertake regular environmental scan to monitor and plan for risk.
Lack of strategic planning
The Risk:
Failure to use strategic plan to its full advantage.
Solutions:
- Develop a communications plan for board of directors and general membership.
- Integrate priority strategic items into operations plan.
- Use strategic plan as a guide when assessing the feasibility of new projects.
- Undertake regular environmental scan to monitor and plan for risk.
Managing competing priorities
The Risk:
Not being able to determine or decide which projects or programs to prioritize, and which to decline or discontinue.
Solutions:
- Use part-time staff, temporary staff, or contractors when appropriate.
- Explore partnership opportunities with PTSOs to complete projects.
- Invest only in programs that further the organization’s mission and vision.
- Review strategic plan to reconcile which current priorities are
Managing competing priorities
The Risk:
Not being able to determine or decide which projects or programs to prioritize, and which to decline or discontinue.
Solutions:
- Use part-time staff, temporary staff, or contractors when appropriate.
- Explore partnership opportunities with PTSOs to complete projects.
- Invest only in programs that further the organization’s mission and vision.
- Review strategic plan to reconcile which current priorities are
Participant Health and Safety
The Risk:
That the inherent nature of the sport has potential for an unsafe environment: youth of participants, coach-athlete power dynamic, body-image issues, coaches from other cultures, parental attitudes, long training hours, strong emphasis on performance not balanced with safety measures.
Solutions:
- Institute Respect in Sport program with all coaches, and encourage board members and staff to take it as well.
- Provide educational programs and resources to members on coaching ethics.
- Include ethics module in NCCP training programs.
- Have adequate policies to deal with ethics and discipline issues.
- Institute minimum requirements for coach certification.
- Provide clubs with risk management policies, education and resources.
- Develop an issues management protocol to establish guidelines for communications and media management, in the event of an incident or other crisis.
- Provide clubs, organizers and events with appropriate medical protocols and guidelines.
- Develop and implement a coaches code of conduct.
- Develop written agreements with delivery groups in which they agree to share risks and fulfill responsibilities
- Explore other best practices (e.g., sport, recreation, education, health).
- Establish a safety committee which does annual safety inspections at all training facilities.
- Ensure all facility staff have adequate medical training.
- Have HP athletes undergo a yearly health screening.
- Ensure orientation and training of staff and volunteers as required (e.g. OHS, Violence in the workplace).
- Offer training in ethical decision making
- Pursue Club Excellence certification for all clubs
- Take steps to use True Sport brand more intentionally.
- Review relevant documents with regularity to ensure they are up to date (e.g., discipline policy and procedures, reporting procedure, coach and athlete agreements, codes of conduct).
- Compare safety policies and procedures with those of other NSOs.
- Use Coaching Association of Canada and Respect in Sport resources.
- Develop education and communication strategies to share safety information.
- Provide athletes with useful information about lifestyle balance, nutrition, anti-doping, etc.
Risk of athlete injury
The Risk:
Risk that an athlete injury will end their career or have long-lasting effects.
Solutions:
- Educate athletes and coaches about preventative measures to reduce likelihood of injury.
- Be a champion for research and safety developments for injuries predominant in your sport.
- Consult with other sports who deal with similar types of injuries.
Sport lacks strong international profile
The Risk:
That the sport lacks a strong profile and reputation within the international community, which inhibits competitive invitations, hosting opportunities, international funding and decision-making influence.
Solutions:
- Undertake deliberate succession planning for international appointments.
- Target and develop emerging leaders, and support them in their leadership aspirations.
- Fully fund all international delegates, and institute reporting requirements in exchange for funding.
- Pursue development of a hosting strategy, in conjunction with sport tourism interests.
- Collaborate with USA counterpart to enhance North American hosting opportunities.
- Support international representatives in creating a communications network/web site portal to improve communication and information sharing among them.
- Facility development strategy – focus on sustaining a small number of highest quality facilities in Canada, to assist in hosting efforts.
- Educate members on opportunities available as an international federation supporter.
Weak brand and profile of sport in Canada
The Risk:
Risk of not building a strong brand that could raise the profile of sport in Canada (e.g., relationships with common interest groups, brand alignment, messaging).
Solutions
- Purposefully align events and communications with common interest groups.
- Invite common interest groups on committees or boards.
- Consider collaborating with other sport, recreation, education or health partners with similar goals / issues.
- Undergo a brand strategy development process (with communications plan) to better align with partners.
- Leverage LTAD into branding.
- Create a common logo for NSOs, PTSOs and host communities.
- Ensure brand is reflected appropriately to various audiences.
- Use strong international profile when possible to build brand domestically.
- Build awareness by partnering with a recognizable "face of the sport".
- Develop a branding guidelines document.
- Leverage unique aspects of the sport.
Weak governance and board operations
The Risk:
The risk of a weak governance structure at the board level.
Solutions:
- Create a formalized process of board member training and evaluation.
- Review sub-board committee structure to ensure alignment to strategic plan.
- Identify a process of board selection that reflects the organization's vision, mission and values.
- Identify possible leaders with targeted skills and expertise for board members.
- Undertake regular environmental scan or SWOT analysis (Strength/Weakness/Opportunity/Threat) to monitor and plan for risk.
- Create a governance manual which outlines current policies and procedures, as well as relevant job descriptions which carry executive authority.
- Develop a succession plan for board, senior staff and key volunteers.
- Develop a communications plan to clearly show how the board makes decisions.
- Use organizational core values to enhance decision making (Management by Values approach).
Weak leadership
The Risk:
Risk of not being seen as a system leader during times of change.
Solutions:
- Share important information showing leadership through a communications plan to members.
- Involve PTSOs and members in the conversation during times of change.
- Find a way to engage certain provinces and territories and for them to champion change.